Haunting memories

Visits to ND tough on Colletto

Visits to ND tough on Colletto

October 19, 2006|ERIC HANSEN Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- He screamed timeout from the press box, his voice and frustration bouncing off the walls and the glass and landing right back in his face. It is UCLA offensive line coach Jim Colletto's last memory from his last game in Notre Dame Stadium as a member of the Irish coaching staff. It's also his most haunting. Colletto -- who returns to ND Stadium Saturday for the first time in eight years, for 10th-ranked Notre Dame's clash with the Bruins -- can still see then-Irish running back Autry Denson lined up on the wrong side of the formation, then LSU linebacker Arnold Miller, then safety Clarence LeBlanc racing in and pounding ND quarterback Jarious Jackson as he was getting ready to take an intentional safety in what turned out to be a 39-36 Irish escape back in 1998. "It was the right thing to do, taking that safety," Colletto, ND's offensive coordinator in 1997-98, recalled of the play that took place with 3 seconds left in ND's home finale. "We practiced that play all the time, every Friday. Jarious probably should have stepped out instead of dancing around, but he was just trying to help us win. He never saw it coming." "It" was a sprained right knee that knocked Jackson out of the season finale at USC. A less-than-vintage Trojan team smothered the Jackson-less Irish, 10-0, and knocked them out of the elite bowl lineup, deleting roughly $10 million from the Irish athletic coffers. Jackson was able to limp into a Gator Bowl, but Georgia Tech helped complete ND's late-season slide with a 35-28 triumph. An Irish team that had steadily climbed to No. 9 in the AP poll prior to USC finished 22nd. "I really enjoyed that team," Colletto said. "It was a fun team to coach. Jarious was just a neat guy. They deserved a better ending. That's my biggest regret." Colletto parachuted out in the weeks that followed, landing a gig as the offensive line coach with the NFL's Baltimore Ravens. He won a Super Bowl ring in his second season with the Ravens and coached in Baltimore for six seasons. Last season he was the Oakland Raiders' offensive line coach, then left to return to his alma mater. "It took some getting used to, going back to the college game," the 62-year-old Colletto said. "You have a lot more time to work with the players in the pros, so now it's all about making sure you're not trying to do too much offensively. And I forgot how elevated the recruiting process is. But overall, I'm having fun." A lot has changed in the football world since Colletto's last visit to Notre Dame Stadium. His old boss, Bob Davie, is now in TV. His first quarterback at ND, Ron Powlus, is now in coaching/recruiting as ND's director of personnel development. "I think Bob Davie does a good job on TV," Colletto said. "It's not something I pictured him doing, but nor did I envision Ronny getting into coaching, but I'm glad he did it. I always thought he was a tough kid, who went through some real trials and tribulations and handled it in a pretty classy way. I'm really looking forward to seeing Ron." And looking forward to a competitive game, something Colletto hasn't had a lot of luck with when going against the Irish in ND Stadium. As a player, Colletto was on the only two UCLA teams to ever face the Irish in football, and they fell by a combined, 51-12, in 1963-64 -- with both games in South Bend. As Purdue's head coach (1991-96), he made three trips into ND Stadium, losing all three by 18 points or more. "I don't miss the weather," Colletto said with a laugh. "I'll have to bring my coat. Of course, I'll have to find it first." Same old story Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis' reworked contract last October 29 was supposed to make these kinds of reports obsolete. ... that NFL teams are calling and enticing and looking for loopholes. Notre Dame tried to take a preemptive strike with more money, more contract years and a ridiculously cumbersome buyout. And yet at least two NFL teams recently sent feelers out to the Irish second-year head coach to see if his heart or his new pact were fickle. "When we redid my contract last year, it should have alleviated any doubt that I'm leaving Notre Dame," said Weis, who actually meant to say Wednesday that the doubt which was alleviated was that he was staying at Notre Dame. "Last year they called to see if you were interested, because you hadn't done the contract yet. This year, they're calling to see if the contract is real. They want to find out if what they hear you're saying is actually what the truth is. How many times do I have to say the same thing?" And then he answered his own rhetorical question. It won't end. "It would cost me too much money to leave," he said. "Money I do not have. Millions of dollars. It's flattering they inquire. But the bottom line still is that's why we did (the contract restructuring) last year. Yes they called. They called last year. They called this year. They'll call again. "There will be feelers, but everyone knows that I'm staying here until they fire me or I die." Personnel matters Weis said all of the players who sat out of ND's 31-10 win over Stanford Oct. 7 with nagging injuries would be available to play Saturday against UCLA. That includes starters linebacker Travis Thomas, safety Tom Zbikowski, and cornerback Ambrose Wooden, though Terrail Lambert has since jumped Wooden on the depth chart. "We're as healthy as we've been in a long time," Weis said. "And this is probably as healthy as we'll be the rest of the way. I don't think there's anyone not ready to go." Staff writer Eric Hansen:ehansen@sbtinfo.com(574) 235-6470